Chapter 16

They walked for some time, being pushed, shoved, and yelled at the whole way. Motorcycles swarmed around them like a plague. Some passing by, some slowing down, some speeding up, some heading off into their own directions. They didn't seem to have a set path, besides Juan LeVuke riding directly behind the captives the entire way.

Pandora's eyes would not leave his captors, and he shivered in near fright. Unlike his, though, Nate and Shatner tried to keep their cool, jumping from place to place. They scanned the formations they were in, and the way the guards watched them, or didn't watch them, and the way the motorcycles came and went.

Shatner soon began to notice other things besides their captors. Women in the streets, ducking out of the way of the parade of people, and mothers covering the eyes of their children in windows in several houses. Their captors made harsh remarks at them, and Shatner saw them speaking with them. Some lovingly, some not so… respectively. Shatner may not have been fluent in French, but he did understand that much of what they said was derogatory or sexual, and it was clear to him that very little here could be considered "civilized".

Nate, on the other hand, had a smug smile on his face, and he examined everything. Soon, his eyes lit up, and one of his eyebrows slightly raised higher then the other.

"Bonjur, my amigo," said Nate, smiling, "Look where we be."

Shatner resisted a glare at him, but it was all wiped away when he followed Nate's eyes and his jaw dropped. Rising up from the distance, the top of a tower could be seen. It didn't take a genius to realize where they were heading.

"Paris," whispered Shatner, after a moment or two more, and the Eiffel Tower could be seen more clearly.

"Paris?" asked Kevin, who was behind him.

"Welcome, guests," yelled LeVuke behind them, over there roar of his motorcycle engine, "To Pari!"

Nate's smile didn't cease, even at the hoots and hollers of all those around them. Shatner leaned closer to Nate, whispering so to not be heard.

"So, there are French colonies alive and kicking, and right here in Paris!" said Shatner, then his brow furrowed and he seemed agitated, "Why in God's name to you have that stupid smug look about you?"

"Oh, Shatner," said Nate, then he made as to play with his mustache and he smiled big, beginning to sing, "Wheeeeeen theeee moon hits yur eye like a big pizza pie, that's amore…."

"No singing! Ne chante pas!" yelled a guard next to Nate.

"Be… our… Guest, be our guest. Put our service to ze test," continued Nate, winking at the guard, "Tie your napkin 'round your-"

The butt of the man's rifle slammed into the side of his head, and Nate fell back and into Shatner's arms. Shatner almost laughed himself, but sobered up enough to lift Nate up and give him a light punch in the shoulder himself.

"Will you knock it off!" yelled Shatner, "You're going to get us all killed!"

"Don't worry," said Nate, "I got what I wanted!"

"Huh?" asked Shatner, but he ignored his own question as many engines roared, and the majority of motorcycle rode off, towards the destroyed city.

Paris showed terrible signs of disrepair and war damage, but it also looked transformed, as much of it was reformed into a battle-readied fortress. Besides a weak wall of dirt and barbed wire surrounding most of the city, and guard towers were posted often.

Many guards and the like wore different parts of old military attire, and they all sported very heavy looking weaponry. Nate spotted several who had military grade sniper rifles and a full-fledged heavy machine gun.

As they entered the city, eyes watched them from every which way. Shatner felt as if he was in the hotspot the entire time. They paraded them right through the city.

They were really surprised when they found out that many of the houses and buildings were relatively deserted until you reached the inner sanctum of the city. Tents and roughly fixed up buildings were then abundant, and soldiers and some women were around. Nate was surprised that he noted that there were no woman fighters in the gang, which he would begin to refer to the Frenchies.

They were led into a side street, away from where the rest of the group was going. After a little bit of walking, Nate spotted a bombed out building, in which several circus cages were located inside. Table surrounded the area, and a few guards were present. A few figures were pacing inside the cages, and as they got closer they saw that they were actually humans, and not any other type of animal.

The group was locked up with the rest, and the rest of the group left. Shatner said they were talking about a "speech at the main plaza" while they walked off. Nate stood up, and examined the three figures sharing this jail-like cell. One was young, about the age of Pandora and the Brits, and wore a buttoned down shirt and tie with his military-style pants. The second looked young as well, but his age was hidden by a cow-boy hat and military uniform. He chewed on a blade of grass, and smiled slightly at the visitors. The other was obviously about the same age of Nate and Shatner, but he looked almost untouched by time except for obvious signs of a recent fight or something. Otherwise, his hair looked well kept (despite being short) and he seemed to be in good hygiene.

Shatner nodded at them, and Nate waved slightly. The one in the hat removed the grass from his mouth, and smiled.

"Whatcha in for?" he asked.

"English?" asked Shatner, "American?"

"Oh my, are you Shatner?" asked the older one, rushing forward, grasping Shatner by the shoulders.

"Fred?" asked Shatner, almost getting relieved, "Oh my God, I'm so glad you're ok! What happened? Are you guys alright?"

"Yeah, we're ok," said Fred, nodding, "So much happened so fast. Something went wrong, I think we sucked something into an engine. One minute we're fine, the next engines are exploding, everyone's yelling, and the pilot's trying to land. I don't know… I woke up… we were down. The pilot was dead… everyone, dead. Well… not everyone."

Fred mentioned to the other two. Nate nodded towards them, grasping his hips.

"And the Frenchies picked you guys up?" asked Nate.

"Without a fight… unfortunately," said the one with the hat.

"I like you," said Nate, smiling slightly, "What's your name?"

"Seth," said the guy, who Nate could now tell was about between the age of Pandora and Nate, and mature for his age at that, "Kentucky."

"Damn, whatcha doing in Callifornia?" asked Nate.

"Wolves and bugs," said Seth, "Had to move. Besides, it's the end of the world. I had to go exploring."

"Sounds good," said Nate, nodding.

"And you?" asked Chalres, pointing at the younger one.

"Name's Andy, Andy King," said the boy, "But I believe some of you remember me by 'Lovecraft'."

"Damn, Lovecraft?" said Pandora.

Nate's face frowned, and he shook his head, "You're not 24!"

Andy's face hardened at the allegation, and he crossed his arms, "So! You believed me."

It was another minute or so, and introductions were made all around. After that, Nate's attention turned to the guards, who rifled through all their possessions left on the table; their guns and bags and whatever else they took. Nate's eyes squinted, and he watched them.

"So, everyone else is…" started Shatner.

"Dead," said Fred, "At least, that's what we think. We didn't really get a lot of time to look around. We were taken not long after the crash."

"Ok," said Shatner, then he crossed his arms, "Now what?"

"We're going to die," said Fred, tears coming to his eyes, "Dude, I'm ENGAGED! And I'm going to die… this is terrible."

"We are not going to die," said Shatner, but he was cut short by a lot of footsteps that approached the building.

Nate was the first to see them, and Shatner walked up behind him, observing Nate's cold stare. The thugs were walking up the street, LeVuke leading them. As he approached, he clasped his hands together, and smiled widely as he approached the cage.

"Welcome, to Paryis, my American friends," he said, even his words leaking of poison.

"Gosh, and I thought D.C. was a dump," said Shatner, Nate smirking with surprise at his retaliation.

"Washington D.C. is nothing in compared to the might we have here, now," LeVuke said, the smile disappearing from his face, "Listen here, Americans: I am so sick and tired of your antics. No more."

"You know," said Nate, "There's still time for all of this to turn around, you know."

LeVuke burst out laughing, prompting laughter from the others in the group. Nate spotted the man with his hat, not far away from LeVuke like earlier. His blood began to boil, and he stood a little more menacingly. Fred's face turned to horror, and he rushed forward, pulling on Shatner.

"What the hell are you doing?" he asked, in fear, "Do NOT piss them off."

"What does it matter? He shouldn't be allowed to bully us, or these people," said Shatner, "Someone has to stand up to them."

"It doesn't have to be US, though," said Fred, "Please."

"Laugh, Frenchy, laugh," said Nate, his eyes seemed to blaze as he glared at the one with his hat.

LeVuke stopped laughing, and with a swift movement of his hand silenced everyone else. His face hardened, and he took another step towards the cage. He glared at Nate, then at Shatner.

"Americans…" he said, and he seemed to spit the word out of his mouth, "You're always so pompous."

"Pompous? That's funny," said Nate, a smug smile appearing on his face, "We say the same about you back home."

LeVuke's rage seemed to burst from him, and he pointed into the cage while swiftly cursing in French. He shook his head, and tried to control himself, but his body shook with his rage.

"Americans," LeVuke finally said, "Your world is GONE! American no longer runs this show. You are NO LONGER ze biggest ship in ze sea. Now that your battleship has sunk, the sharks have come to feast. Now, you think you can bully away these sharks? Your threats and nukes and guns mean merde out HERE!"

"Cry me a river, dude," said Nate, and Iawn flipped a middle finger behind Nate at the Frenchman, "Let me out of this damn cage, I'll show you I don't need any guns."

"You will get your chance," said LeVuke, and he spat some French to the men behind him, evoking them to aim their rifles into the cage, "We'll have some fun seeing which of you are the real tough ones."

"Please," begged Fred, pushing between Nate and Shatner, pressing against the bars, "We're not with them. I'M not with THEM. Please, this is all just a misunderstanding. I just want to go home."

LeVuke smiled, allowing his glance to enter the eyes of Nate, and then into Shatner's, before pointing at Fred, "Start with zis one. Zank you for volunteering, ami."

The clicks from gun safeties were heard all around, and everyone inside of the cage raised their hands and backed away from the front of the cage. A guard walked forward, and opened the door. Two soldier walked in, pistols drawn at the group. Fred broke into tears, and tried to tear away as one of the reached forward for him. Together, the two guards tried to get him, but he struggled, and hid behind the others. The guards took a few steps back, and looked from one to another.

"Give him up," said one of the guards, in a terrible French accent, "Or all die."

Nate grasped Fred by the ear, and yanked him forward. Fred yelped in pain, but was silent when Nate's boot connected with his backside and sent him forward, into the arms of the awaiting guards. The guards smiled, and dragged Fred out. LeVuke smirked, and even let out a laugh , looking at Nate. Shatner and the rest looked away, instead looking at Nate, surprised… angry… confused…

"I knew it," said LeVuke, calmly, "All you Americans are the same. Number One, right?"

The group left, hooting and hollering, and the cries from Fred could be heard for some time. They left, and sounds of music and yells and even gunfire could be heard. The group spread out more, looking at Nate. Nate examined the two guards who were left behind. They didn't pay much attention to the caged captives.

"What is with you?" said Shatner, crossing his arms, "You… you just…"

"You f***in' ass hole!" yelled Andy, rushing forward at Nate, only to be stopped by Leo and Charles, "You sold him! You threw him down the river without a second GLANCE! You heartless, cold…"

"What's got you in a bunch?" asked Seth, crossing his arms, "If I'm not mistaken, aren't you known by the title 'comedianmasta'?"

"I don't know," said Shatner, his anger growing, "I'm not sure what pisses him off more. The fact he was beaten by the French or the fact he lost that damn hat of his!"

"What?" asked Seth, then he noticed the glare Nate shot Shatner and smiled, "You sold Freddy down the river cuz you're pissed over a hat? S*** man, I would've given you mine."

"That's not IT!" yelled Nate, getting upset, "And it's not the same hat."

"Yeah it is," answered Charles, "Cow Boy hat?"

"It's a FEDORA!" said Nate, "Completely different… and that's not it. We needed time; we're getting out of here."

"And how do you suggest that," said Seth, pulling out a flask from his jacket, "We don't have any weapons."

"Alcohol?" asked Kevin, slightly broken with all that has happened.

"Hell yeah," said Seth, taking a swig, "Hid it, so the bastards couldn't take it. Want a go?"

Seth handed out the flask, and Kevin took a swig, a smiling spreading wide across his face.

"Ok, Action-Jackson," said Seth, turning back to Nate, "How do you expect to get out of here?"

Nate raised his hand, and a blade shot out from his wrist area, showing off the sharpened metal with an "I-told-you-so" look on his face. Shatner's eyes rolled, but everyone else looked amazed by it.

"Cool do-dad ya got there," said Seth.

"You've had that the whole time?" asked Leo.

"Can I touch it?" asked Andy.

"Can I have it?" asked Iawn.

"How is that going to open the door?" asked Kevin, giving the empty flask back to Seth, which evoked a surprised and horrified glare from Seth.

"It's not," said Nate, and he reached into his pocket, pulling out a paperclip and a pen, "But this will. I've been saving it for such an occasion."

This time, Shatner nodded along. At least Nate could MAYBE get them out of this hell-hole. Or at least, get them shot faster.

Another five minutes, and Nate had wiggled pieces of the pin, combined with the paperclip, in the lock long enough for it to start to turn. The others watched out for him, Kevin and Andy trying to hold a fake conversation so as to not alert the guards of the true intentions.

One guard rifled through their stuff, while the second walked from one side to another, completely unaware of anything. The second walked off to the side, peeing in a drainage pipe.

When the lock fully turned, and Nate heard the click of it unlocking, he smiled, and everyone got eerily quiet as he walked out of the cage. Nate was careful where to place his feet as he walked down the two steps and onto the gravel, slowly making his way towards the guard rifling through their things. Nate's tongue came out of his mouth to lick us upper lip, but seemed to freeze at the corner of his mouth. Nate lifted his hand, allowing the blade to shoot out, glimmering in the failing sunlight.

Nate approached the lone guard, and he stood to his full height, pulling his hand back, pointing the blade towards the guard. With one clean movement, he thrust forward and stabbed the blade into the guard's upper shoulder and the second blade came out. Nate wasted no time plunging the second blade into his lower back as the guard let out a horse scream of surprise, and gurgled as he died.

The second guard looked over lazily, then his eyes widened in surprise as he saw what was going on. He ignored his open pants and grasped his rifle leaning on a wall nearby. As he brought it up to bear, Seth's fist slammed into his face from the side, and Shatner kicked him in the gut before he could recover, sending him to the ground, knocked out.

Nate removed the blades from the dying guard, and allowed him to continue bleeding out in surprise on the ground. He then examined the bloody blades on either wrist and scrunched his nose in disgust. He tried to fling as much of it off as he could, but only managed getting spots of blood on his hands. The other exited the cage, and eagerly grasped at the table for their items.

"Not bad, man," said Seth, smiling as he picked his pack and a rifle out of the pile.

"Doesn't make up for before," said Andy, "I'm watching you!"

"Alright, let's go," said Nate.

Nate grabbed his rifle and his pack, strapping on pistol to his side and beginning to head down the street, even as the others tried to gather their things. Shatner was next who was ready to go, and he slammed his rifle's butt into the head of the knocked out guard, insuring unconsciousness.

"Now what?" asked Shatner, "They took out the maps, how are we going to-"

"That way," said Nate, pointing down the street. He began to head out at a trot, several of the group following him down the street.

Shatner rolled his eyes, then nodded at the rest, following Nate down the street. They ducked their way through the broken city, being careful as to where they stepped and where they went. Several patrols could also be seen, and they would dash into alleys or even into destroyed houses to avoid them. Many of the "patrols" didn't seem to care about a thing, and clearly did not expect any attack or escape from anyone.

"Why aren't we taking them out?" asked Leo, "Shouldn't we be shooting at some people?"

"That would be stupid," answered Nate, "This time, we'll just fight when needed."

"We can't leave," said Andy, who clutched a nice 12 gauge pump shotgun, "Fred was taken that other way. Now we're just LEAVING him?"

Nate turned and glared at Andy, and pointed at him, "Lovecraft, another word out of you and I'm sending you back alone, understood? You follow ME, ok?"

Andy's face became the example of pure anger, but Seth's hand on his shoulder, and a steady nod from him, calmed him down a little bit. Nate gave a nod, and crawled from the rubble, continuing their way out of the city.

They reached one end of the city, and a guard post was present, one guard sleeping in a chair in the short tower. Nate climbed it, and with the swift movement of his hand, slit his throat with one of the blades. Jumping from the tower, Nate pointed out. Here, many buildings had been destroyed, and it appeared to be a thinner part of the city. You could easily see a small, makeshift cliff in the distance.

They ran across the waste, trying to keep low to avoid being seen for as much as possible. They climbed a small path, onto the makeshift hill made of years of abuse of buildings and wreckage. Nate looked back, and smiled. All of Paris could be seen.

"Alright," said Shatner, "We made it, but we're not out of the woods yet. We need to get out of here, and put some serious distance between us and them."

"Go," said Nate, pointing away from himself, "Head in that direction. Move quickly; but… I need…"

Nate dragged Iawn and Charles aside, pointing back at the city.

"I need your help, guys," Nate told them.

"What's going on?" asked Shatner, confused, "What are you doing?"

"You go, I'll catch up," said Nate, smiling and pointing at his head, "I forgot something."

Nate winked, which enraged Shatner, but with Seth, Kevin, and Andy heading in the direction Nate pointed out, and Leo beginning to follow them out, He shook his head and turned and jogged after them.

"You're a fool, Flint," he yelled behind him, "Don't get those boys killed!"

"That's the idea," said Nate, under his breath, then he turned to Charles and Iawn, "Iawn, you have a rifle with an OK scope, and Charles, you still have those binoculars? Good, listen up. When I give you the signal, begin shooting. Anyone… anywhere… especially if they are running behind me, or shooting in my general direction. Good luck, guys. Stay here and don't get killed."

"Oh, RIGHT," said Iawn, smiling, "Some ACTION!"

"We'll be here," said Charles, smiling.

"I'll be right back," said Nate, lowering his goggles and walking off, grasping at his rifle.

Iawn and Charles smiled at one another.

"That is epic, mate," said Charles.

"Like a blasted action movie!" said Iawn, then he frowned, "He should have said something better, though. 'I'll be back' would've been good."

Nate peered out of the alleyway, staring down the second back street. The sounds of raging music and gunfire filled his ears, and the sense of danger was high in his mind. He crouched as he walked, and hugged the side of the wall as he turned the corner and made his way down the alleyway. He could hear the beginning of some sort of speech, coming in and out of English and French.

"My… PEOPLE," the voice rang out in the English portions, "Ze Americans think they can once again rule our planet. But…"

He cut into French once more, and Nate turned another corner. A lone guard stood, writing some sort of letter, alone in the alleyway. He smirked as he wrote it, his eyebrows raising and lowering easily. Nate took a deep breathe, and pulled out his pistol from its holster. Taking a few silent steps forward, he straightened up, and gained the energy to approach the unknowing guard.

Nate kicked the back of his knee, sending the guard downward, onto one knee and letting out an exclamation of surprise, dropping his pencil, but clutching onto the letter. Nate, not waiting for him to recover, held out his pistol, aiming directly down into the back of his head, and he pulled the trigger. The sound of the pistol blended right in with the rest of the gunfire that went off in agreement to something said in the French portion of the speech. The man's body crumpled, and slunk over, now empty of the soul that had once inhabited it.

Nate held his gun back, looking around. Trying to erase the image from his mind, he quickly walked past the dead body, and peered around the corner and saw the coast was clear.

The next corner Nate took lead Nate into a very small alleyway. Nate could see the precession taking place on the other end. A guard was at the end of the alleyway, watching the speaker. Past him, Nate could see a little of what was happening, but chose to ignore it for the time being. Nate snuck downward, and wondered how to deal with this guard. As he continued down, Nate saw a door into the building next to him, and he opened it and made his way inside. Inside, it appeared to be some kind of armory. Weapons were thrown about everywhere. Grenades could be seen here and there. Ammo belts and ammunition boxes were strewn about the room.

Nate spotted a large group of windows that stretched the length of the side of the building. Outside, he saw that the speaker was none other then the LeVuke guy from earlier, and he walked around in the middle of a courtyard of some sort, Fred was in the center, bleeding from one eye and hunched over, seeming to want to roll into a ball to disappear.

"Americans!" yelled LeVuke, going back to English, and spitting on the ground, "It is time we put them in their place. Beat them to death… hang zem from our glorious Eifel Tower! Defile their bodies, and send zem BACK to America to send a message. We are ze best, WE are in charge… WE are taking back our WORLD!"

This was followed by an outcry from the French who spoke English, and a small delay in the outcry from those who didn't, as it was repeated by their friends in French.

Nate spotted a staircase farther down, and he ducked behind a counter and headed in that direction. Nate passed by a table, and stopped cold. A smile spread slowly across his face.

"Oh yeah," he whispered to himself, "I need this."

Nate was looking at one of the tables next to him, and a Rocket Propelled Grenade Launcher was in the open, ready and loaded. A second RPG sat next to it, so Nate grabbed the rocket, and worked to place the launcher on his shoulder and he smiled dirtily. He now wasted no time getting up the stairs and looking around up there. No guards appeared to be on the second floor, so he kneeled down, and headed towards the ledge. One whole side was blown open, leaving a large opening looking down at what was happening. Nate spotted a large fuel truck, now, which seemed to pump fuel into a large tank that had obviously been salvaged from somewhere else. So, they DID have electricity.

His attention turned to the crowds of Frenchmen and Women standing and sitting around, cheering and firing upwards. LeVuke grinned at the outcry, and he knelt down next to Fred, whispering something to him. Finally he stood, and pointed down at Fred.

"Alright, Cowboy. Don't talk. There's no point in talking," cried LeVuke, then he turned and smiled into the crowd, "None of your Cowboy friends can save you out here. This isn't your America… your Wild Wild West. This is France! This is Europe!"

Nate's eyes narrowed, and his head shook slightly.

"I… am like Napoleon," said LeVuke, seeming to calm slightly, "And like Napoleon, I demand the glory of France to be recognized in our world! And Like Napoleon… I will lead my army across Europe… across the WORLD, and we will show them all! No one will stop us! Not a Nazi, not a Russian, not a English man… Not a Chinaman, and, definitely, no filthy, stinking, stupid, American Cowboy!"

This ignited a large amount of praise and cheers from his heated crowd, and his eyes scanned over what his words have done.

Nate sidled out, and aimed down the sights of the RPG. LeVuke caught the movement, and their eyes locked. LeVuke went from surprise, to anger and sheer rage, to fear at the realization of the situation.

"Yippie-Kie-Aye, Frenchy," yelled Nate, and he pulled the trigger, as hard as he could.

The rocket soared from the launcher, and veered off almost instantly. LeVuke covered his head, and dived as the rocket streaked overhead, and slammed into the large tank of gas. The tank exploded immediately, igniting the truck and all those around it as well.

Nate swore under his breath, loading the second rocket. A second explosion erupted not far away, and a few seconds after that, another ignited slightly farther out. Nate shook his head, now the whole damn city was burning!

Nate placed the rocket on his shoulder once more, and aimed at the largest group of raiders he could see. The other French Raiders were still shocked at what had happened, and were trying to work out what had happened in a short amount of time. As the second rocket shot from the launcher and slammed into the side of the building, taking with it the majority of the crowd Nate had aimed for, the group of raiders began to disperse, some in fear, some in confusion, and some in anger.

Nate dropped the launcher without a second thought, grabbing his rifle and running from the ledge down the stairs. He took aim at the door, and counted to three. Sure enough, the door was wretched open and the guard from earlier stumbled in. He put three rounds into his chest and he fell through the door, and he immediately put four into the one behind him, who fell to the right.

A third, who began putting together what had happened to his allies, began to stumble in, but before he put the pieces together, Nate had riddled his body with bullets. Nate waited for a moment, trying to see who would come through next. No one did, and so Nate head for the door, and peered around the corner into the ally. He didn't see any threats, so he left the doorway, stepping over the bodies, and he made his way out into the courtyard.

Nate shot one guy who almost ran into him, and he continued towards where Fred lay. Fred clutched at his ears, looking around completely confused. Nate grabbed his arm, lifting him up and pushing him onward.

"What… the F***, man," yelled Fred, "You guys almost hit me. What was THAT?"

"Me," said Nate, firing at a few raiders who were beginning to get their act together, "It's just me."

"What?" asked Fred, "Just you? You! You pulled my ear… you gave me UP! You… ass HOLE!"

"Can you shut up," asked Nate, "Or at least speak some damn French, blend in a little."

"Where're we going?" asked Fred, looking around.

"The long way," said Nate, "I'm looking for…"

A man stumbled in front of Nate, and Nate smiled, spotting his brown Fedora on his head. The man locked eyes with Nate, and Nate nodded.

"Nice hat," said Nate, then he pressed his gun barrel against the man's chest and pulled the trigger, allowing one shot to go clean through his body.

The man fell over, and Nate replaced his Fedora on his head. Fred stared at the whole situation in horror, and Nate ignored it, shoving the man's pistol into Fred's hands.

"What?" asked Nate, then he nodded at the gun, "Do something useful, shoot something. NOW we can go."

Nate ducked down as another explosion was heard, and he shook his head, dragging Fred behind him through the city.

The confusion was so great, that they passed by roughly unnoticed through the city streets and through the alleys. Nate seemed to get more and more angry as time went on, but the explosions that continued happening kept him in his own state of confusion.

"Everything's blowing up," exclaimed Nate, finally, "Why? I shot one frickin' thing! One thing!"

"That's not your diversion plan?" asked Fred.

"I had a plan?" answered Nate, looking at Fred.

This did not ease Fred's fear, and his eyes widened, "What… ARE you. There's no way you're human. You're like… some sort of mutated… lucky… Unlucky prick who was spawned in the nuclear radiated cesspool of SATAN!"

"Wow, thank you," said Nate, putting on a fake smile, "You didn't have to be so kind. I only saved your life and all… no big deal."

"You didn't save my life! You've taken me out of the pot… and INTO another POT!"

"Yeah… well… our pot has cookies," said Nate, finishing that conversation and grabbing Fred's shoulder, dragging him along further.

Another minute or so and Nate found himself running across the waste once more, Fred in tow. They were a little farther up then when he had come in, but he found the spot where Iawn and Charles were easily and he climbed the hill.

Iawn and Charles wrestled on the ground, fighting over the binoculars.

"No, I wanna see it. It's my TURN!" yelled Iawn.

"They're my opticals, you wankah!" yelled Charles, "Get off me you motherless twit!"

"Hey!" yelled Nate, getting their attention, "What are you two doing?"

"I want to see the explosions," said Iawn, "And he's been hogging the opticals."

"You kidding me?" yelled Nate, "You have a RIFLE with a SCOPE. Wait a minute… What is WRONG with you? Where was my covering fire? What did I tell you about helping me before I left?"

"You said, wait for the signal," answered Iawn.

Nate's face was sheer surprise, and he opened his hands up wide and pointed at Paris, which now burned and small explosions continued to make large fireballs and smoke puffs out of the city.

"What the HELL do you think all of THAT is?" asked Nate.

Iawn's face softened, and he began to think, finally saying, "Ooooohhhh…."

"Oh my god…" said Fred, grasping at his forehead, "You've destroyed Paris… you've destroyed it."

"Oh, come on," said Nate, "It's not that bad… Come on, we got to go."

"Not that bad?" asked Fred, "What do you MEAN it's 'not that bad'? It couldn't POSSIBLY get any WORSE!"

This time, a much larger explosion was heard, one that shook the very earth under their feet. At the base of the Eifel Tower, large smoke and fire spewed from everywhere, and multiple explosions all happened at once. The tower itself shook, and its creaking and straining could be heard from where Nate stood.

Then, the Tower began to lean and bend, and to Nate's horror, it seemed to slowly, crash down. Buildings, vehicles, and more explosions were swallowed up by the dust and debris of the Tower's fall. It was all over in a minute or two.

"Why…" asked Nate, turning towards Fred of absolute horror, "Do you people ALWAYS have to say that? It's like you are BEGGING for it."

"Blimey," said Charles.

"That's cool," mumbled Iawn, still in a state of awe.

"Alright," said Nate, "Come on, we have to catch up. Let's go."